JimBob
11-29-2008, 10:24 AM
Win or lose, draw up Gundy a better contract
By DAVE SITTLER World Sports Columnist
11/29/2008
Last Modified: 11/29/2008 3:16 AM
STILLWATER — Win or lose Saturday in the Bedlam Bowl, Oklahoma State officials should tear up coach Mike Gundy's contract and give him a new and improved one.
Now there's a sentence I wouldn't have written a year ago.
As a matter of fact, less than a year ago my response to news of Gundy receiving a one-year contract extension took only two words: "What? Why?"
OSU released the information the day before the 2007 Big 12 Conference championship game in San Antonio. Several media members covering the title game had a reaction similar to mine: "What has Gundy done to receive this vote of confidence? And why had athletic director Mike Holder felt compelled to recommend to the board of regents that Gundy's contract be extended through 2013?"
After all, Gundy's record to that point was a rather mediocre 17-19. And hadn't Holder chastised his football coach behind closed doors after Gundy embarrassed the university with his histrionic-laced meltdown during a press conference that season?
My goodness, what a difference 51 weeks makes.
On the Saturday before the Big 12 holds its 2008 title game in Kansas City, Mo., Gundy has his fourth OSU team on the brink of school history as the No. 11 Cowboys head into tonight's latest Backyard Bedlam Brawl against bitter rival Oklahoma at Boone Pickens Stadium.
This week's buildup for the showdown in Stillwater has centered totally on what a victory would mean for No. 3 OU (10-1, 6-1 Big 12). The Sooners desperately need a win to continue their quest for berths in next week's Big 12 title game at Arrowhead Stadium and the BCS national championship Jan. 8 in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Overshadowed in the national debate about whether OU, Texas or Texas Tech should represent the South Division next week against North Division champion Missouri in case of a three-way tie, is the significance tonight's Bedlam Bash holds for OSU (9-2, 5-2).
A victory would mark the first time in OSU history that a team won 10 regular-season games. The school's three 10-win seasons all included a bowl win. An upset of favored OU also would give OSU six league wins for the first time in Big 12 history.
The nine wins already have assured the Pokes of a third consecutive bowl bid under Gundy. But win No. 10 would push OSU up the Big 12's bowl pecking order, possibly as high as a spot in the Jan. 2 Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
Gundy's most impressive achievement, however, is the grace-under-fire approach he's maintained throughout a pressure-packed season. And I'm not talking about controlling his emotions during press conferences. Real pressure is when you know that the man whose name is on the stadium is eyeing every move you make from his luxury suite. It's even more intense when you already know what the rest of us found out this week when Pickens told the Associated Press his 2008 expectations.
"It's either 9-3 or 10-2, I said before the season started," said Pickens, OSU's No. 1 fan and sugar daddy.
When Holder attempted to lessen Gundy's challenge by saying 8-4 might be doable, the billionaire booster told his friend and hand-picked AD, "I'm not settling for less than 9-3 or 10-2."
You would have to thumb through the myriad of preseason football magazines to find anyone who shared Pickens' optimism. Most prognosticators agreed with Holder's 8-4 assessment, while some figured 7-5 would be solid evidence Gundy has OSU on the right track.
OSU's 28-23 win at then-No. 3 and undefeated Missouri on Oct. 11 changed everything. One of the top two or three road wins in the nation this season, it got the Cowboys a spot in the South Division race along with OU, Texas and Texas Tech.
Anyone who understands how Pickens made his billions knows he didn't accumulate his wealth by being patient. So while he may admire Gundy, an OSU alum and four-year starter at quarterback, Pickens has never hesitated to fire anyone who can't get him what he wants.
And the 80-year-old Pickens has often acknowledged that his age has added to impatience. He wants the millions he's spent on OSU to start producing success while he's still alive to see it.
Outwardly, you'd never know the low-key Gundy was feeling any pressure. But the 10-plus pounds that have melted off his already-thin frame reveals the stress he has dealt with this season.
Holder declined comment on any reward Gundy might receive at season's end. He vowed to never again discuss a coach's future during the season, after he repeatedly got burned for positivity when Gundy was 7-9 overall and 1-8 in the Big 12 midway through his second season.
OSU's AD doesn't have to say a word. Win or lose tonight, Gundy's performance screams for the need of OSU officials to rip up that contract extension and give their coach an even bigger and better deal.
By DAVE SITTLER World Sports Columnist
11/29/2008
Last Modified: 11/29/2008 3:16 AM
STILLWATER — Win or lose Saturday in the Bedlam Bowl, Oklahoma State officials should tear up coach Mike Gundy's contract and give him a new and improved one.
Now there's a sentence I wouldn't have written a year ago.
As a matter of fact, less than a year ago my response to news of Gundy receiving a one-year contract extension took only two words: "What? Why?"
OSU released the information the day before the 2007 Big 12 Conference championship game in San Antonio. Several media members covering the title game had a reaction similar to mine: "What has Gundy done to receive this vote of confidence? And why had athletic director Mike Holder felt compelled to recommend to the board of regents that Gundy's contract be extended through 2013?"
After all, Gundy's record to that point was a rather mediocre 17-19. And hadn't Holder chastised his football coach behind closed doors after Gundy embarrassed the university with his histrionic-laced meltdown during a press conference that season?
My goodness, what a difference 51 weeks makes.
On the Saturday before the Big 12 holds its 2008 title game in Kansas City, Mo., Gundy has his fourth OSU team on the brink of school history as the No. 11 Cowboys head into tonight's latest Backyard Bedlam Brawl against bitter rival Oklahoma at Boone Pickens Stadium.
This week's buildup for the showdown in Stillwater has centered totally on what a victory would mean for No. 3 OU (10-1, 6-1 Big 12). The Sooners desperately need a win to continue their quest for berths in next week's Big 12 title game at Arrowhead Stadium and the BCS national championship Jan. 8 in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Overshadowed in the national debate about whether OU, Texas or Texas Tech should represent the South Division next week against North Division champion Missouri in case of a three-way tie, is the significance tonight's Bedlam Bash holds for OSU (9-2, 5-2).
A victory would mark the first time in OSU history that a team won 10 regular-season games. The school's three 10-win seasons all included a bowl win. An upset of favored OU also would give OSU six league wins for the first time in Big 12 history.
The nine wins already have assured the Pokes of a third consecutive bowl bid under Gundy. But win No. 10 would push OSU up the Big 12's bowl pecking order, possibly as high as a spot in the Jan. 2 Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
Gundy's most impressive achievement, however, is the grace-under-fire approach he's maintained throughout a pressure-packed season. And I'm not talking about controlling his emotions during press conferences. Real pressure is when you know that the man whose name is on the stadium is eyeing every move you make from his luxury suite. It's even more intense when you already know what the rest of us found out this week when Pickens told the Associated Press his 2008 expectations.
"It's either 9-3 or 10-2, I said before the season started," said Pickens, OSU's No. 1 fan and sugar daddy.
When Holder attempted to lessen Gundy's challenge by saying 8-4 might be doable, the billionaire booster told his friend and hand-picked AD, "I'm not settling for less than 9-3 or 10-2."
You would have to thumb through the myriad of preseason football magazines to find anyone who shared Pickens' optimism. Most prognosticators agreed with Holder's 8-4 assessment, while some figured 7-5 would be solid evidence Gundy has OSU on the right track.
OSU's 28-23 win at then-No. 3 and undefeated Missouri on Oct. 11 changed everything. One of the top two or three road wins in the nation this season, it got the Cowboys a spot in the South Division race along with OU, Texas and Texas Tech.
Anyone who understands how Pickens made his billions knows he didn't accumulate his wealth by being patient. So while he may admire Gundy, an OSU alum and four-year starter at quarterback, Pickens has never hesitated to fire anyone who can't get him what he wants.
And the 80-year-old Pickens has often acknowledged that his age has added to impatience. He wants the millions he's spent on OSU to start producing success while he's still alive to see it.
Outwardly, you'd never know the low-key Gundy was feeling any pressure. But the 10-plus pounds that have melted off his already-thin frame reveals the stress he has dealt with this season.
Holder declined comment on any reward Gundy might receive at season's end. He vowed to never again discuss a coach's future during the season, after he repeatedly got burned for positivity when Gundy was 7-9 overall and 1-8 in the Big 12 midway through his second season.
OSU's AD doesn't have to say a word. Win or lose tonight, Gundy's performance screams for the need of OSU officials to rip up that contract extension and give their coach an even bigger and better deal.